So what’s next?
For just the 13th time in franchise history, the New Orleans Saints are in the market for a new head coach.
Dennis Allen’s dismissal on Monday closed the door on his three-year tenure in New Orleans and signaled the end of an era. As the most high-profile holdover from the Sean Payton-Drew Brees era, Allen’s firing likely will open the door to a new direction for the Saints, who for almost two decades have been driven by the cultural philosophy established by Payton in 2006.
As such, the Saints have arrived at a crossroads.
Owner Gayle Benson and trusted lieutenants Mickey Loomis and Dennis Lauscha must decide the future path of the organization. Which direction they choose will determine the trajectory of the Saints.
So many questions remain:
Is interim head coach Darren Rizzi a viable candidate for the job?
Or do they want to start with a completely fresh slate as they did when landing Payton in 2006?
Will they go big-game hunting and pursue an alpha head coaching candidate like Bill Belichick or Mike Vrabel?
Or will they follow the Payton plan and ply the coordinator market for a rising star like Joe Brady, Ben Johnson or Bobby Slowik?
And finally, are the changes limited solely to the head coaching position? Or are more moves being considered?
We’ll have to wait until Loomis and/or Benson address the media before learning the answers to those questions. Neither was available to the media on Monday. Instead, interim head coach Darren Rizzi, safety Tyrann Mathieu and tight end Foster Moreau were sent out to address reporters on Black Monday.
“If something’s got to change, then something’s got to change,” Rizzi said in sharing his message to Saints players during a team meeting earlier in the day.
The quote was something he learned from one of his coaching mentors, Bill Parcells, the former head coach and front office executive, who famously embraced change during his Hall of Fame career.
“We’ve been doing things around here the same way for a long, long time, and maybe some are good and maybe some aren’t,” Rizzi said. “There will be some different things we do going forward, for sure.”
In his seminal manual, The Art of War, Sun Tzu recognized that “In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity.”
The Saints capitalized on their opportunity when they hired Payton and signed Brees during in the post-Katrina chaos of 2006. A similar opportunity exists this go-round.
A head coaching change is a critical task for any organization. It’s especially important for one like the Saints, who pride themselves on their familial culture and close-knit management team. The Saints value stability, continuity and familiarity more than most organizations. This is often an organizational strength when compared to dysfunctional peers like the Panthers and Raiders. At times, though, their loyalty can be a blind spot. See: Dell Demps, Pelicans, 2010-2019.
The Saints’ leadership hierarchy has enjoyed a near-two-decade-long run of relative stability. With key members of the group entering the August years of their tenures — Benson is 77, Loomis is 68 — there are only so many head coaching hires left for them to make. Both wanted Allen to be their last one.
That they are back at the drawing board three years after hand-picking Allen to be Payton’s successor is massively disappointing to everyone involved.
Only 32 NFL head coaching jobs exist in the world, so the interest in the Saints position will be high. There will be no shortage of candidates interested in the job.
But there are significant challenges for whoever becomes the club’s 13th head coach. The roster is aging and in a state of transition. There’s no long-term quarterback solution. And the salary cap situation is messy for another year or two.
The decision to fire Allen was a difficult, but necessary one. Now comes the even harder part: replacing him. But a great opportunity exists here for the Saints.
Will they hit a home run like they did with Payton?
Or will they strike out like they did with Allen and be back here again in 2027, looking for Head Coach No. 14?
The future of the Saints rides on this hire.
